Wainwright, William, Assistant Manager Grand Trunk Railway, Montreal, like not a few of the prominent railway men of North America, is a native of England. He was born in a city which, from its situation and industrial and commercial importance, could not fail to be closely associated with whatever was most enterprising in the British railway movement of from forty to fifty years ago. It was not surprising that a young man of ability and ambition should be early attracted to a branch of business which had prizes for those who could win them. Mr. Wainwright, born on 30th of April, 1840, was not quite eighteen when he entered the service in January, 1858. He applied himself diligently to the tasks assigned him, and that he succeeded in mastering them in all their details was shown by the successive steps of promotion of which he was deemed worthy by his superiors. He began as junior clerk in the chief accountant’s office, but in due time rose to the positions of senior clerk, secretary to assistant-general manager, and general manager of the road with which he was connected. That line was the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway, which traverses a most important portion of central England. In 1862, Mr. Wainwright came to Canada and obtained a position on the Grand Trunk. For a year, he served as senior clerk in the accountant’s office. Then he was appointed secretary to the managing director, and in that capacity he continued for three years. We next find him filling the office of senior clerk in the manager director’s department, and taking charge of the car mileage. Thus passed six years more, and then Mr. Wainwright became general passenger agent. As such he was widely known and gave general satisfaction as well to his colleagues and superiors as to the public that had dealings with him. He remained in that position for upwards of eight years, until in May, 1881, he received the appointment of assistant-manager, the duties of which he still so ably discharges. Mr. Wainwright was also general manager of the North Shore Railway, from April, 1883, until the transfer of that line to the Canadian Pacific Railway. Mr. Wainwright is highly esteemed in private life, being as agreeable in social intercourse as he is assiduous and conscientious in the discharge of his official duties.
Rose, Hon. Justice John E., LL.D., Toronto, one of the Judges of the Court of Common Pleas, was born at Willowdale, county of York, on the 4th of October, 1844. His father, who came from the vicinity of Kingston, was born in 1806, and is at the present time the oldest Methodist minister in Canada, and was long and favorably known to the denomination as the manager for many years of the Methodist book concern in Toronto. His mother, who belongs to the Street family, was a native of the Niagara District. Judge Rose received his early education at the Dundas Grammar School, and after a successful academic course at Victoria College, Cobourg, graduated there in 1864. Making choice of law for his profession, he diligently pursued his studies in the offices of Ross, Bell & Holden, of Belleville, and of Patterson, Beaty, & Hamilton, of Toronto. In 1866 he took his degree in law, and in the following year was called to the bar of the province. He commenced the practice of his profession in Toronto, and was soon successful in building up a large and remunerative business, the firm ultimately including five partners and giving employment to about a score of clerks. In 1881 he obtained his silk gown as Queen’s counsel, and with this merited honor and the enhanced professional status, came increase of business and the continued confidence of a large and rapidly extending circle of clients. He was specially retained by Parkdale to procure from the railway committee of the Privy Council an order for the construction of the sub-way on Queen street, which was the first order of the kind made under the Act, and was obtained in spite of the opposition of four powerful railway companies. Mr. Rose was equally successful in conducting the well-known case of Moore v. the Mutual Insurance Company which eventually was decided in the plaintiff’s favor by the Imperial Privy Counsel; and in other important suits of a commercial character his professional abilities have won him deserved honors. From an early age he took a deep interest in the affairs of the Methodist church, and became an active and zealous worker in its ranks. He was at first connected with Elm street Church, Toronto, but on the erection of the Metropolitan Church he associated himself with those who were the founders of that edifice, and on Dr. Punshon’s departure for England he became an official member and trustee of the Metropolitan Church, and the recording secretary of the board. Mr. Rose is also a member of the Senate of Victoria University, in whose affairs he takes a warm interest, and in 1886 that university conferred upon him the honorary degree of LL.D. In 1883 the Dominion government appointed him to a judgeship in the Common Pleas Division of the High Court of Justice for Ontario, rendered vacant by the elevation of Mr. Justice Osler to the Court of Appeal. The appointment gave universal satisfaction to the profession, by whom the learned judge is held in high esteem, for to this elevated and honorable position on the bench of his native province Mr. Rose brought eminent abilities, a well read, judicial mind, industrious and pains-taking habits, and a ready faculty of discerning the essential points of a case and of soundly determining the law. In not a few of his charges to juries he has shown himself a wholesome and stern moralist, and determined to exercise for good his high position on the bench. Judge Rose was a Liberal Conservative in politics. In 1868 he married Kate Macdonald, of Toronto, by whom he has three children.
Macallum, Archibald, M.A., LL.B., Hamilton, Ontario, was born in the parish of Killmichell, Argyleshire, Scotland, on the first day of August, 1824. His parents were Donald and Mary Macalpine Macallum. He was the third son and the eighth child in a family of eleven. When he was about six years of age he came with the other members of the household to Canada, and after a short delay settled in East Hawkesbury, county of Prescott. He was, during the first fourteen years of his life, a healthy, active boy, full of life and spirits, and always cheerful and hopeful. But at the end of that period he had a severe attack of inflammation of the lungs, which, owing to the heroic treatment then in vogue, permanently weakened his constitution and probably laid the foundation of the disease that caused his early and lamented death. During Mr. Macallum’s boyhood he spent a number of years in attending school and working at intervals on the farm. The facilities for securing an education were, in those days, and in that locality, very limited. The schools in the country sections were of an inferior character, and books were difficult to obtain, but by availing himself of every opportunity of securing tuition, and perseverance in private study, he was enabled, at a comparatively early age, to fit himself, in some measure at least, for the profession of a teacher, and taught for a few years in his own vicinity with acceptance and success. Sometimes, in order to keep ahead of his more advanced pupils, he was compelled to study with great diligence in the intervals of school work, but he then formed the habit of constant progress in the search for knowledge which remained with him for life. He was always advancing in his attainments, and never satisfied with the progress he had made. Once only did he yield to the restlessness and love of change that characterize the average boy. He tried for one winter the life of a lumbering man, and went to Quebec on a raft during the following summer; but that life was not to his taste, and he returned to the work of teaching. When the Normal School at Toronto was about to be opened, the late Dr. Ryerson proposed that each county council should send one student, who, after taking the Normal course, at the expense of the council, should return and illustrate and apply, in a sort of model school, the principles he had learned in the provincial institution. In accordance with this suggestion, the council of the counties of Prescott and Russell arranged for an examination of candidates for this purpose to be held at L’Orignal. Mr. Macallum was advised to attend this examination. He succeeded in the competition, and was sent as the leading student of his county to Toronto. He was one of the earliest pupils of the Normal School, immediately took a high position, and obtained the first first-class certificate ever granted by the Educational department of Upper Canada. He was soon appointed to the position of principal of the Provincial Model School in connection with the institution in which he had received his training. Nothing could more fully show the high esteem in which he was held by the instructors of the school, and by Dr. Ryerson, who at that time took a direct personal interest in the welfare of the Normal and Model Schools. It is worthy of remark that Mr. Macallum’s high sense of honor would not allow him to accept the distinguished office offered him until he had received the full permission of the Prescott county council, and pledged himself to refund all advances made by them on his behalf. He entered upon his duties as principal with his usual energy, and from the first the Model School was a success. He secured the respect and affection of his pupils, and received many tokens of their esteem. He remained in Toronto until the year 1858, when he removed to Hamilton to take charge of the public schools in that city. He was principal of the Hamilton Central School until the passing of the Educational Act of 1874, when he became Public School Inspector. For twenty years he remained at the head of the school system of Hamilton, and the marked progress of the institutions under his care gave evidence of the ability and assiduity with which his important duties were prosecuted. He died in the midst of the people in whose service he had spent the richest and ripest years of his life. The flags flying at half-mast in every part of the city, the distinguished cortege that followed his remains to their last earthly resting-place, and the resolutions of sympathy sent to his widow from all the leading societies, told of the esteem in which he was held. Hamilton mourned for him as for an honored father. Mr. Macallum’s career as a student kept pace with his work as an educator. In 1864 he took the degree of B.A., in Toronto University; in 1866 he obtained his M.A., and in 1877 his LL.B. As an author, Mr. Macallum occupied no mean place. His publications were principally practical works on education. Several valuable charts, some historical, and one relating to the animal kingdom, were prepared by him. He was the author of a work on grammar, and another on history, and in 1878 he published an English Literature Primer, the merit of which was so universally recognized that in a single year it ran through five editions. As a lecturer he met with considerable success, choosing in almost every case scientific subjects. As a citizen and a man of business Mr. Macallum’s abilities were known and appreciated. He was a director of the Canada Fire and Marine Insurance Company, the Canada Loan and Banking Co., the Hamilton Street Railway Co., and The Hamilton Ladies’ College. In the several patriotic and fraternal societies which draw men nearer to each other, and foster brotherly feeling and national sentiment, Mr. Macallum found a worthy place. As a Scotchman he had that love for his native land that characterizes every good man and true. At the time of his death he was the honored president of the St. Andrew’s Society in Hamilton. He was an organizer, and chief, of the Caledonian Society. He was also a respected member of Barton lodge, A. F. & A. M. His charities in connection with these and other institutions were large, and so unostentatiously dispensed, that their full extent was not known until after his death. In politics Mr. Macallum was a Liberal. Though he held decided views on many of the public questions of the day, he was moderate in expressing them, and kind and considerate towards all who differed from him. He had deep convictions of the responsibilities and duties belonging to good citizenship, and he was never led by mere sentiment. He made up his mind carefully on these as well as on other subjects, and was not to be moved from his conclusions after having reached them. His piety was deep and fervent, but undemonstrative. He was not the man to parade his cherished emotions and experiences before a mixed multitude, yet with those of kindred spirit he delighted to hold Christian fellowship. His parents belonged to the Established Church of Scotland, in which communion they remained to the end of life. Their son found his way, while yet a youth, to a Wesleyan place of worship, and at the age of sixteen years, he remained after the public service to a class-meeting led by the Rev. Franklin Metcalf, and united with that church. To the day of his death he remained a Methodist, and during his residence in Hamilton he held the positions of class-leader, trustee, and steward, in the Centenary Church. He was a consistent, earnest, and thoughtful Christian, and kept himself unspotted from the world. His sympathies and efforts were not, however, confined to his own communion, for every evangelical community found in him a brother and co-worker. The esteem in which he was held by the Christian public appeared in the fact that he was chosen as the first Canadian delegate, with the Rev. Dr. Gibson (then of Montreal), to the International Sunday School Lesson Committee from 1872 to 1879, the year in which he died. His eminent literary abilities, his rich scholarship, and his profound acquaintance with the word of God, made him an exceedingly valuable workman in this important field. In connection with these duties he visited New York, Baltimore, Chicago, Indianapolis, Atlanta and New Haven. During the early part of Mr. Macallum’s residence in Toronto, he married Maria, daughter of the Rev. Ezra Adams. This union was a very happy one, though not of long duration. Her early and unexpected death was deeply felt by him. Some years after, in 1859, he married Mary Biggar, daughter of Herbert Biggar, of Mount Pleasant, in the county of Brant. Mr. Biggar is still living at the advanced age of more than eighty years. He was for some years a member of the old Canadian parliament, and served his friends nearer home for a length of time in the county council. Mr. Macallum’s second marriage was an exceedingly happy one. Their home was one of quiet comfort, made bright and beautiful by mutual kindness. All that a wise and thoughtful affection could do to aid him in health and soothe and comfort him during the lingering illness that took him away, was done. His wife and five children survive him. Though he died at the early age of fifty-five years, few names were so long and prominently before the public as an educator. For more than thirty years he occupied a position amongst the teachers of this province second to none. Largely self-educated and self-developed, he was a bright example of what may be done, with little or no aid from others. His life in the home, the school, the church, and among his fellow-citizens was one of quiet power. Few men did more for the educational interests of this country in his day than he did. But his intellectual attainments and accomplishments were rendered more influential by the unswerving integrity of his life and the moral beauty of his character.
Cooley, Rev. John W., Minister of Zion Tabernacle, Methodist Church, Hamilton, was born in Toronto township, county of Peel, Ontario, on the 7th November, 1852. His parents were Thomas and Ann Cooley. The former was born on one of the Channel islands, where his father, a British soldier, was stationed about the date of the battle of Waterloo. He was brought up near Belfast. His mother was a native of Fermanagh, Ireland, and the family emigrated to Canada early in life. Mr. Cooley, senior, was for many years a missionary agent of the American Tract Society among the sailors on the Welland Canal, and was one of the most active agents in securing the closing of the canal against Sunday traffic. Rev. Mr. Cooley, the subject of our sketch, received his education chiefly in the public and high schools in Thorold, under the Rev. John McNeely, M.A.; Brampton High School, under John Seath, B.A., now High School inspector; and in the Galt Collegiate Institute, under the principalship of the late William Tassie, LL.D. In 1869 he became a public school teacher in the Central School, Owen Sound. For five years he continued in the profession, in different places, meanwhile prosecuting his studies privately, and taking an examination for teacher’s certificate each year. In the year 1873 he was appointed teacher of the Senior Boys’ School, Guelph. During this year his religious conversion took place, and he became active in the work of the Methodist church and the Guelph Young Men’s Christian Association, of which he was secretary. At the beginning of the year 1874, at the request of the chairman of the district, coupled with his own convictions, he accepted an appointment as junior preacher on the Elora circuit of the Methodist church. His subsequent appointments were, 1874-75, Listowel; 1876, Hamilton, Hannah street Church; and in 1877, Stratford. In 1878 he was ordained and stationed at Elmira, county Waterloo. Toward the end of his three years’ term a throat affection compelled his temporary retirement from the work of the ministry. The greater part of the next two years (1881-82) was spent in newspaper work, as a member of the editorial staff of the WinnipegFree Press. In October, 1882, on his complete restoration to health, he resumed his ministerial work, being appointed to Jerseyville circuit, near Brantford. Three years were spent thereon. In 1885 he was appointed to Dunnville, and in 1887 to the pastorate of Zion Tabernacle, Hamilton, where he now is. In August, 1878, he was married to Emily H. Keeling, of Guelph, daughter of the late George M. Keeling, the founder of theGuelph Mercury, who died in 1861. This lady was a highly gifted musician, organist for many years, and subsequently choir leader as well, of the Norfolk street Methodist Church, Guelph. She was a very popular vocalist and was widely esteemed for her amiability, good judgment and energy in social and church work. She died in April, 1885, leaving two children, one of whom alone is now living. Rev. Mr. Cooley is a very active and pronounced temperance advocate and prohibitionist, and takes a deep interest in all other social movements.
Young, Hon. James, Galt, Ontario, is of Scotch descent, being the eldest son of the late John Young and Jeanie Bell, natives of Roxboroughshire, Scotland, who came to Canada, in 1834, and at first took up their residence in the village of Dundas in the then Gore District. Almost immediately afterwards the family were induced by the Hon. Wm. Dickson to remove to Galt, and here Mr. Young engaged in business and resided until his death in 1859. James Young, the subject of this sketch, was born in Galt, on the 24th of May, 1835, and has ever since resided there. He received his education in the public schools of his native place; and at an early age displayed great fondness for books, which he has kept up since. In his youth he had a predilection for the study of the law, but finding he could not carry out this idea, he chose printing as a profession, which he began to learn when he had reached his sixteenth year. When only eighteen years of age, he purchased the DumfriesReformer, which he afterwards conducted for about ten years. Under his management this paper attained a great local influence, and in addition was the means of making Mr. Young well known beyond the narrow limits of Waterloo county. During the earlier part of the proprietorship, the political articles in the paper were written by one of his friends, he himself taking the general supervision and contributing the local news. Upon the completion of his twentieth year, he took the editorial control, which he retained until 1863, when finding his health not very robust, he sold out theReformer, and retired from the press for a while. He afterwards went into the manufacturing business, and became the principal partner in the Victoria Steam Bending Works at Galt, which he carried on successfully for about five years. During his connection with theReformer, Mr. Young had necessarily taken a conspicuous part in the discussion of political questions, and his paper was an important factor in determining the results of several local contests. He frequently took the platform on behalf of the Reform candidate, and was known throughout the county as a ready and graceful speaker. He took a conspicuous part in municipal affairs, and for six years sat in the town council; he was an active member of the school board, and devoted a good deal of his time to educational matters; and also took a special interest in commercial and trade questions, on which he came to be regarded as a high authority. In 1857, the Hamilton Mercantile Library Association, having offered a prize of fifty dollars for the best essay on the agricultural resources of the country, Mr. Young carried off the prize. This essay was shortly afterwards published, under the title of “The Agricultural Resources of Canada, and the inducements they offer to British laborers intending to emigrate to this continent,” and was most favorably received by the public, and highly praised by the press. Eight years later (in 1865), the proprietors of the MontrealTrade Reviewoffered two prizes for essays on the Reciprocity Treaty, which was then about to expire, and Mr. Young sent in a paper which carried off the second prize. His success on this occasion led to his receiving an invitation to attend the commercial convention held next year in Detroit, Michigan, and he had the satisfaction of hearing on that occasion the great speech on commerce delivered by the late Hon. Joseph Howe. He first entered parliament in 1867, when he was elected by the Reform party of South Waterloo, as their candidate for the House of Commons. This was the first election under Confederation, and he was opposed by James Cowan, a Reform Coalitionist, who was also a local candidate of great influence; and in addition to this Mr. Young had to encounter a fierce opposition, the late Hon. John Sandfield Macdonald, the Hon. William McDougall, and Sir William Howland taking the field on one occasion on behalf of Mr. Cowan. These formidable opponents were courageously encountered by him single-handed, or with such local assistance as could be procured, and he was returned by a majority of 366 votes. When parliament met in the following November, he made his maiden speech in the House on the Address. He also took a conspicuous part in the debates of the session, and materially strengthened his position among his constituents. He was twice re-elected by acclamation, first at the general election in 1872, and again in 1874. Of the Mackenzie government he was a loyal and earnest supporter throughout. He was chairman of the committee on public accounts for five consecutive sessions, and after the death of Mr. Scatcherd, became chairman of the house when in committee of supply. Among his principal speeches in parliament, were those on the Intercolonial Railway, the Ballot, the admission of British Columbia, with special reference to the construction of the Pacific Railway in ten years, the Treaty of Washington (which was unsparingly condemned), the Pacific Scandal, the Budget of 1874, the Naturalization of Germans and other aliens, and the Tariff question. Soon after entering parliament he proposed the abolition of the office of Queen’s printer, and the letting of the departmental printing by tender. This was ultimately carried, and effected a large saving in the annual expenditure. In 1871 he submitted a bill to confirm the naturalization of all aliens who had taken the oaths of allegiance and residence prior to Confederation, which became law. In 1873 he brought in a measure to provide for votes being taking by ballot, and the government subsequently took up the question and carried it. On two occasions the House of Commons unanimously concurred in addresses to Her Majesty, prepared by him, praying that the Imperial government would take steps to confer on Germans and other naturalized citizens the same rights as subjects of British birth enjoy in all parts of the world, the law then and still being that they have no claim on British protection whenever they pass beyond British territory. In 1874 he proposed a committee and report, which resulted in the publication of the debates of the House of Commons, contending that the people have as much right to know how their representatives speak in parliament as how they vote. At the election of 1878, chiefly through a cry for a German representative, he was for the first time defeated. In the following spring the general election for the Ontario legislature came on, and Mr. Young was requested by the Reformers of the North Riding of Brant to become their candidate in the local house. He at first declined, but on the nomination being proferred a second time, he accepted it, and was returned by a majority of 344. For many years Mr. Young’s services have been in request as a writer and public speaker. He contributed occasionally to the late “Canadian Monthly,” and has been a regular contributor for many years to some of our leading commercial journals, the articles being chiefly upon the trade and development of the country. He has also appeared upon the platform as a lecturer upon literary and scientific subjects. As a political speaker, he has been heard in many different parts of the province, throughout which he now enjoys a very wide circle of acquaintance. He has held and still holds many positions of honor and trust. He is a director of the Confederation Life Association; and of the Canada Landed Credit Company; has been president and is now vice-president of the Sabbath School Association of Canada; is president of the Gore District Mutual Fire Insurance Company; was for eleven years president of the Associated Mechanics’ Institutes of Ontario; and a member of the Council of the Agricultural and Arts Association. A few years ago Mr. Young wrote and published a little volume of 272 pages, entitled “Reminiscences of the Early History of Galt, and the Settlement of Dumfries.” Apart from the fact that works of this class deserve encouragement in Canada, Mr. Young’s book has special merits which are not always found in connection with Canadian local annals. It is written in a pleasant and interesting style, which makes it readable even to persons who know nothing of the district whereof it treats. On June 2nd, 1883, Mr. Young was appointed by the Mowat Government, and sworn in as treasurer of the province of Ontario, and on appealing to the electors of North Brant, his acceptance of office was approved by a majority of 551. On the 29th October of the same year he was compelled to resign his portfolio on account of his health, which, impaired by political and literary overwork, particularly during the preceding twelve months, was found unable for the time being to stand the close confinement of office work. At the next election for the Ontario Legislature in December, 1886, he wrote a letter, declining to accept renomination to the local house. We are glad to say Mr. Young’s health may now be said to be fully restored, evidence of which was furnished during 1887 by the publication of a pamphlet from his pen on the subject of the national future of Canada, and discussing the question of commercial union and imperial federation. Thisbrochureopposes both these schemes, and takes strong ground in favour of Canadian nationality, and has been widely read throughout the Dominion, having gone to a second edition. In religion Hon. Mr. Young is a Presbyterian, and in politics a Liberal. On the 11th February, 1858, he married Margaret, second daughter of John McNaught, of Brantford.
Hamilton, Robert, D.C.L., Bishop’s College, Lennoxville, Quebec, was born at New Liverpool, near the city of Quebec, on 1st September, 1822. His father was George Hamilton, of Hawkesbury, and of Quebec. He was educated under the Rev. Dr. Urquhart, of Cornwall, and was only seventeen years old when his father died from the effects of a severe cold caused by exposure while discharging his duties as colonel of militia during the rebellion of 1837. His eldest son, Robert, the subject of this sketch, at once undertook his share of the labors and responsibilities connected with the extensive lumbering business which had been built up slowly and painfully amid many discouragements. In those early days of the country’s growth there were none of the modern appliances for facilitating work of every kind. Large enterprises were carried on under circumstances which demanded forethought, caution, and resolution. The means of communication were limited, tedious and uncertain. There were no railways, only a few sluggish steamers—and no telegraphs. Even the mails were carried in a leisurely way over the country. When parties of men were despatched in the autumn of each year to the rivers Rouge and Gatineau for the long winter’s work of cutting down thousands of trees and placing the logs upon the ice, it was necessary to provide them with supplies of every kind. Pork, biscuit, tea, sugar, and clothing were conveyed to them by sleighs from Hawkesbury—if not from Montreal. The breaking up of the ice in the spring was always a very anxious time. The rapid rise of the rivers rendered the return journey of the men very perilous. The booms stretched across the mouth of each river sometimes proved quite insufficient to withstand the pressure of the water covered with thousands of logs. The mills built at Hawkesbury for cutting up the logs and preparing them for the British market were extensive and kept in a state of admirable efficiency, being supplied each winter with every new improvement. The season for work was very short—for the waters fell as rapidly almost as they rose—and the difficulty of conveying the logs in rafts to New Liverpool became serious as the summer advanced and the rivers became shallow. Six weeks represented the long voyage of a raft from the mills at Hawkesbury to the cove at New Liverpool. Here the tedious process of washing each deal with buckets and brooms and then marking its quality—whether 1st, 2nd or 3rd class—occupied many weeks. Then followed the delivery of the deals on board the ships which in those days were generally chartered to carry them to London, where another washing and examination followed their delivery at the docks, and then they were sold as promptly as the market would permit, for the capital represented by them from first to last was very large and long locked up—from the crown license to cut down the trees on through the months of winter, spring, summer and autumn, and in some cases a second winter and spring—before the London market was reached. Such a business in its numerous departments and in its unceasing demands for judgment, patience, endurance and persistence was an education in itself. The best qualities of a man’s head and heart were sure to be exercised, developed and strengthened. Robert Hamilton quickly and resolutely gave himself in the most thorough systematic manner to his life’s work and has not only built up a liberal fortune, but guarded and promoted the welfare of the large family of whom he was the eldest—but seventeen years old, as he said, at the time of his father’s death. Mr. Hamilton, in the use of his fortune, has afforded an example much needed in every young community. In no sense has he been brought under the power of wealth, and in no direction has wealth spoiled or marred his character. He has studied and realized in his family, and in his life in the community, the rare satisfaction of using money liberally, judiciously, and with taste, avoiding every abuse of it. His home at Hamwood on the St. Foy road, near Quebec, is a pattern of simplicity, taste and comfort—all that an educated gentleman of refinement should have about him, and for the comfort and advantage of his family, he has brought together in a home which is full of pleasant memories and rare attractions to many because of the quiet enjoyment which its hospitalities have afforded them. He has never taken any part in the politics of the country—his tastes and preferences drawing him to the study and promotion of other interests. As a member of the Church of England, he is widely known for his generous aid to all good works. The diocese of Quebec has found in him a true and intelligent friend. He has never put himself forward to relieve others of their proper responsibilities, the due discharge of which has so much to do with their characters and their happiness in life. Recognizing the responsibilities attaching to him as a man of wealth, he has been no easy, good-natured careless giver, but has patiently and thoroughly studied the best ways and methods of applying his large and generous gifts both to parishes and to the diocese of Quebec, and to the University of Bishop’s College, Lennoxville. These have been so applied as to call out the active energies and co-operation of others, and the result is to be seen in the permanent and satisfactory endowments so needful for a church whose members in such a community as the province of Quebec must always be few in number and weak in resources. The University of Bishop’s College, in recognition of his position and services, conferred upon him in 1885 the honorary degree of D.C.L. In 1845 he married the eldest daughter of the late John Thomson of Westfield, near Quebec. He has a large family, and is surrounded by an attractive crowd of grand-children. His summer resort at Cacouna is full of attractions—foremost amongst them being the gathering of his children and their families about him.
Lount, William, Q.C., Toronto, Ontario, was born at Newmarket, on the 3rd of March, 1840. His father was George Lount, then registrar, and brother of Samuel Lount, who was executed with Matthews in 1837, during the rebellion. The subject of this sketch received his education at the Grammar School, Barrie, studied law with Mr. (now Sir) Adam Wilson, finishing his last years with Mowat & McLennan, and was called to the bar of Upper Canada in 1861, when he immediately commenced the practice of his profession in Barrie. In 1867 he ran for the Ontario legislature, for the North Riding of Simcoe against Angus Morrison. He was elected by a fair majority, and supported the Sandfield Macdonald government for four sessions; but on seeking re-election he was opposed by W. D. Ardagh, the regular Conservative nominee, and H. H. Cook, the Reform nominee and was defeated, Mr. Ardagh being elected. He then retired from politics owing to its taking too much of his time from his profession. He had in the meantime formed a partnership with Mr. Boys, now the junior judge of the county of Simcoe, which lasted for some years, when a new partnership was formed by the admission of D’Arcy Boulton, Q.C., and H. D. Stewart. Five years later this firm was dissolved, Mr. Lount retiring and forming a partnership with his brother, as Lount & Lount. This partnership was continued until the decease of the late James Bethune, Q.C., when Mr. Lount entered into partnership with Mr. Bethune’s late partner, Mr. Marsh, under the name of Lount & Marsh, in Toronto, which firm still continues. He received his patent as Queen’s counsel from the Ontario government on 11th March, 1876, and from the Dominion government in 1877. He has acted as Crown counsel for the Ontario government on several important cases. He has always been president of the North Simcoe Reform Association, taking a very active interest in its affairs, laying all the plans and organizing the party for the fray. He was married on the 17th July, 1874, to Miss Orris, daughter of John Orris, on lake Erie, near Dunnville, and grand-daughter of Colonel Cotter who fought at the battle of Waterloo, in which action he took a very active part as captain in a British regiment of the line.
Buchanan, Wentworth James, Montreal, General Manager of the Bank of Montreal, is one of a class of native Canadians of which the Dominion has reason to be proud—a class of men who, beginning life with the prestige of an honorable family record, won by industry, energy and integrity in the professions, make it their aim to increase that prestige by their own personal exertions. Mr. Buchanan’s grandfather came to Quebec with the 49th regiment,—Colonel (afterwards Sir Isaac) Brock, in command—and was a surgeon in that regiment. His father, Alexander Buchanan, was only four years of age when he accompanied his parents to Canada. After receiving a good education in the then available schools, he studied law with the late Andrew and James Stuart (afterwards Sir James), of Quebec, rose to be one of the ablest jurists who ever practised at the Montreal bar, and was a Queen’s counsel in the days when this honor was conferred upon very few. At the time of his death he was the oldest judge of the Superior Court of the Lower Canada. James Wentworth Buchanan was the second son of this venerable judge, and was born on the 11th December, 1828. He received a sound commercial education; and the great monetary institution in which he was destined to attain so prominent a position was not yet thirty-five years in operation when he began his career. That was in 1847, when he entered the Commercial Bank as a clerk, and five and a half years later he obtained a situation in the Bank of Montreal. From March, 1853, until 1858, he applied himself steadily to his duties, with such satisfaction to his superiors that in the latter year he was appointed manager of the branch at Woodstock, and, subsequently, held in succession a similar charge at Brantford, Cobourg, Hamilton and Toronto, Ontario, acquitting himself at each of these places in such a way that confidence in his ability and integrity increased from year to year. In 1874 he was promoted to the post of local manager at Montreal. In 1880, the late Mr. Smithers being made general manager, Mr. Buchanan became assistant general manager; and in 1881, on the election of the former gentleman to the presidency, he was chosen his successor, and since then he has occupied the highly responsible position of general manager.
White, Hon. Thomas, Ottawa, Minister of the Interior of the Dominion of Canada, M.P. for Cardwell, Ontario, was born at Montreal, on the 7th of August, 1830. His father was Irish, a county Westmeath man, and his mother Scotch, having been born in Edinburgh. Mr. White, senior, carried on business as a leather merchant in Montreal for many years, where he was greatly respected. He sent Thomas, the subject of this sketch, to the High School of that city, where he received the education which in later years he was destined to turn to such excellent account. Having left school, he engaged for some years in mercantile pursuits, but this was not according to his taste, and he soon made up his mind to abandon the calling, and accepted a position on the editorial staff of the QuebecGazette—which position was offered him in consequence of an address he had delivered on temperance in the city of Quebec some time before, and which attracted great attention. In 1853 he started, in company with his brother-in-law, Robert Romain, the Peterboro’Review, which he was connected with until 1860. Then he entered upon the study of law in the office of the Hon. Sidney Smith, Q.C., of Peterboro’, and prosecuted his studies during the full term of four years. He then removed to Hamilton, and, with his brother Richard White, purchased theSpectatornewspaper, which they conducted with great energy from 1864 to 1870. Mr. White, from an early age, evinced a marked interest in public affairs; and when he was yet a very young man, was chosen reeve of the town of Peterboro’. He likewise always took a great interest in educational affairs, and served upon the Grammar School boards in Peterboro’ and Hamilton. In Montreal, where in later years his chief personal interests were centred, he took an important part in civic and general business. He was for a number of years representative of the Montreal Board of Trade in the Dominion Board; for three years a member of the executive committee of the Dominion Board of Trade, and representative for five years of that body at the National Board of Trade of the United States. But important and ever conspicuous connection with civic matters, and with associations, did not satisfy the ambition of Mr. White. He had been for years a close and careful observer of political events, and a conscientious student of public questions. So he resolved to seek admission to parliament; and when he sought that admission he did not go as a raw recruit, who has to study public questions after he has entered the legislature. His mind was well stored with practical information, and his judgment ripened by a wide experience. In 1878, he was first returned to parliament for Cardwell, his present seat. But this success was not achieved without much perseverance and strong efforts. In 1867, he was an unsuccessful candidate for South Wentworth in the Ontario legislature; in 1874, for the county of Prescott, in the House of Commons; and in 1875 and 1876, respectively, for Montreal West, in the House of Commons. It may be pointed out that the aggregate majority against him in the three first elections amounted to only sixteen votes. Mr. White has retained his seat for Cardwell since 1878. He has always been an able and very conscientious supporter of the Conservative party’s national policy, and is always prepared with an invincible array of arguments to defend the position which he takes upon this question. He is one of the most industrious members of the House of Commons, and best informed on the government side of the house on questions of trade and commerce. Hon. Mr. White is a graceful, polished and telling speaker; always conveys the impression of being master of his subject, and never becomes confused when he gets upon his feet. In 1885, affairs in the Northwest Territories assumed a very unsatisfactory state, rebellion broke out, and general discontent prevailed anent the government’s management of that vast territory. At this time Sir David Macpherson, minister of the interior, was suffering from illness and unable to cope with the many questions forced upon him through this unfortunate state of things, and when compelled to resign and go to Germany to restore his health, every one began to search for a man of ability to take charge of the vacated departmental headship. Sir John A. Macdonald selected the member for Cardwell to fill the vacancy, and the most complete satisfaction was evinced by the public, indeed even organs most bitterly opposed to the government admitted that the selection was a most admirable one, for the industry, the ability for organization, and the capacity of the minister elect, were known to every one. Almost immediately after receiving the appointment, Mr. White proceeded to the Northwest, and made painstaking investigation into the many unsettled affairs in that region; and it is not necessary to show how numerous, how tedious, and how immense this task was, and the work which afterwards fell to him at his office in the capital. We mention this to show the grave responsibility resting upon the shoulders of the minister of the interior, but there is much satisfaction in knowing that there is no public man of whom we have any knowledge better fitted to cope with the Northwest difficulties than Mr. White. Before closing the sketch, we think it is only fair to mention that the Hon. Mr. White, like many of the leading men who now hold public positions, received his early training as a speaker in the division rooms of the Sons of Temperance, and that, when a young man and a resident of Lower Canada, he occupied one of the highest offices in the Grand Division of the Sons of Temperance of the province of Quebec, and was the first in Canada to write a pamphlet explaining the aims and objects of an order of temperance workers, that are as active to-day in extending the cause of temperance and prohibition as it was about forty years ago, when the order was first introduced into Canada.
Duplessis, Louis Theodule Neree LeNoblet, Advocate, Three Rivers, M.P.P. for the county of St. Maurice, Quebec province, was born at St. Anne d’Yamachiche, on the 5th March, 1855. He is the fourth son of Joseph LeNoblet Duplessis and Marie Louise Lefebvre Descoteaux. His ancestors came from France at the end of the seventeenth century, and settled at La Pointe-du-Lac, in the district of Three Rivers. He was educated at the Seminary of Nicolet and at the Seminary of Three Rivers. He studied law as a profession, and in January, 1880, was called to the bar of Lower Canada, and is now practising in Three Rivers, in partnership with J. M. Deselets, Q.C. Mr. Duplessis did not take an active part in politics until the general election of 1886, when he was returned to the Legislative Assembly of Quebec for the county of St. Maurice. In religion he is an adherent of the Roman Catholic church, and in politics a Conservative. He is a rising man, and not many years hence will make his mark in the legislature of his native province. On the 14th July, 1886, he was married to Bertha Cécile Genest, daughter of L. U. A. Genest, clerk of the peace for the district of Three Rivers.
Clarke, Henry Edward, M.P.P. for West Toronto, the subject of this sketch, and one of the rising men in the provincial capital, was born at Three Rivers, Quebec, on the 20th of March, 1829. He is a son of Henry Clarke, and Ellen Armstrong, both of whom came from Midhill, county of Fermanagh, Ireland. Our subject received his tuition, which comprised a sound and practical English education, from public teachers and private instructors, and at fifteen years of age Mr. Clarke left home to push his fortune in the world. Commerce drew him into its busy and active field. At the age of eighteen he had learned the trade of saddle and trunkmaking, and found employment in one of the largest shops in Montreal. Here he remained until 1848, and then removed to Ottawa (then Bytown), where, in the following year, when barely twenty years of age, we find him foreman of the largest saddlery shop in the town. At Ottawa he remained for about four years, working diligently, and perfecting himself in his trade. Mr. Clarke again returned to Montreal in 1853, and the next year he was sent to Toronto to open a branch trunk store for R. Dean & Co., of Montreal. Mr. Clarke now resolved to carry on business for himself, and in ten months after his arrival here he bought out the business of R. Dean & Co. Although he had little capital at his command, he had industry and perseverance, and the result is that we now find him at the head of one of the largest trunk manufacturing establishments in America, and one of the most solid and enterprising of Toronto’s citizens. Although an active man in his own business, yet Mr. Clarke has found some time to devote to public affairs. For eight years he was a director of the Mechanics’ Institute; was alderman for St. George’s Ward in 1879, and for St. Andrew’s Ward for the years 1881, ’82, and ’83. He was chairman of the Court of Revision in 1881, and of the Executive Committee in 1883. He was elected, in 1883, and again in 1887, to represent Toronto West in the Ontario Parliament, and this seat he still holds. He was also for a time one of the directors of the Federal Bank. As a politician Mr. Clarke has achieved distinction and won a high place for himself in the Ontario legislature. He is an effective speaker, and has on repeated occasions ably supported his leader, Mr. Meredith, in the active duties of legislation, and done good service to his party on the floor of the house. As an ardent Conservative, he sits at present in the cold shades of opposition; though did a change of government come, Mr. Clarke would find himself not only “on the Treasury benches,” but no doubt among the prominent members of the cabinet. He possesses an active and practical mind, is fairly well read, and keeps himself posted on all the leading questions of the day, in so far as they come under the purview of politics. Lately he has taken a prominent part in opposing the Commercial Union of Canada with the United States, feeling that it might tend to an undesirable political alliance with the Republic, and retard the industrial life and development of Canada. On this subject, Mr. Clarke contributed his views on the opposition side of the argument to theCanadian Almanacfor 1888, Mr. Erastus Wiman, of New York, taking the affirmative side. On other subjects of practical moment, in the domain of politics and legislation, Mr. Clarke has written and spoken much, and his views always command considerable public attention. Mr. Clarke is an Orangeman, having joined the order in 1849. He travelled extensively in 1878, and visited London, Edinburgh, Dublin, Belfast, Paris, Geneva, Mont Blanc, Berne, Lucerne, Munich, Vienna, Trieste, Venice, Florence, Rome, Naples, Pompeii, and other historic places. On his return, he delivered a lecture called “Impressions of a Tour in Europe,” in Richmond street Methodist Church, and afterwards published it in pamphlet form. Mr. Clarke belongs to the Methodist denomination, and in politics is a Conservative. He married in May, 1856, Anne, daughter of the late Thomas Kennedy, of Montreal, and has a family of three children, a boy and two girls. His son died at the age of fourteen years. Mr. Clarke’s career has been industrious and honorable, and he enjoys the fruits of his labors and the respect of his fellow men.
Desilets, Joseph Moise, Q.C., Advocate, Three Rivers, Quebec, was born on the 13th April, 1838, at Bécancour, county of Nicolet. He is the son of Isidore Desilets and of Marie Perenne de Moras, both belonging to old French families. He received his education at the College of Nicolet and St. Hyacinthe. He adopted law as a profession, and was called to the bar of Lower Canada on the 2nd September, 1862. He was appointed a Queen’s counsel, March 9th, 1887. He was alderman for the city of Three Rivers from 1864 to 1869; mayor of the same city from 1869 to 1872, and district magistrate for the district of Three Rivers from 1873 to 1878. Mr. Desilets is now practising in partnership with N. L. Duplessis, advocate, and M.P.P. for the county of St. Maurice. In religion he is a Roman Catholic, and in politics a Conservative. He was married, June 3, 1863, to Marie Malvina Trudel, the only daughter of the late Oliver Trudel, notary, and of Sophia Sulte.
Morris, John Lang, B.C.L., Q.C., Barrister, Montreal, born at Perth, Ontario, in 1835, is the youngest son of the late Hon. William Morris and Elizabeth Cochrane, and was educated at High School, Montreal, and McGill College, graduating as B.C.L. in 1859. He studied law under his brother, the Hon. Alexander Morris, the late Judge Torrance and the Hon. Judge Cross, and was admitted to the Montreal bar in June, 1859. Mr. Morris has long enjoyed a large and influential practice—his partners having been Robert A. Leach, son of the late Very Rev. Archdeacon Leach, a talented young advocate whose promising career was prematurely cut short by death; the late Judge Torrance, and subsequently the late Thomas W. Ritchie, Q.C., and William Rose, son of Sir John Rose, Bart. His present partner is Charles M. Holt, B.C.L., son of the late Judge Holt, of Quebec, and the business is carried on under the firm name of Morris & Holt. Mr. Morris is a specialist in commercial, real estate and ecclesiastical law—is a clear, logical and convincing pleader, and has been for many years the counsel of the Presbyterian Church. In this last capacity he conducted successfully in all the courts of the province of Quebec, the celebrated case of Dobie and the Temporalities Board. He was retained by the church to plead the same cause before her Majesty’s Privy Council in England and although the judgment of our court was modified in some respects, he was successful in inducing that tribunal not to grant the prayer of the anti-unionists that the funds be handed over to them. Upon the strength of this judgment legislation was subsequently obtained from the Dominion Parliament which set at rest the pretensions of the minority to hold the church funds. This act, as stated by the Rev. Robert Campbell, D.D., in his “History of the St. Gabriel st. Church, Montreal,” “met with stout opposition in the private bills committee of both houses of parliament—calling forth the magnificent speeches of Principal Grant, of Kingston, Mr. Macdonnell, of Toronto, and John L. Morris, of Montreal, in reply to Messrs. Macmaster, Brymner and Lang.” In religion, Mr. Morris, following in the footsteps of his father, is a “true blue” Presbyterian, and has been an elder in connection with St. Andrew’s, and since the union of Presbyterians, with St. Paul’s Church, Montreal. He took a very active and leading part in promoting the union of the Presbyterian churches in 1875, both by his speeches on the floor of the synod and professionally in successfully defending the various suits instituted by the minority opposed to the union. He has been a Sunday school teacher and superintendent for over thirty years. Like his elder brother the Hon. A. Morris, he has taken a great interest in Canadian affairs, and has delivered a number of popular lectures upon the history of Canada. In politics, Mr. Morris has always been a consistent Conservative, and although too much devoted to the interests of his profession to have entered into public life, has in a quiet but energetic way exerted a good deal of influence in supporting his party. He is married to Agnes McCulloch, youngest daughter of the late Dr. Michael McCulloch, of Montreal, who fell a victim to his heroic devotion to the sick during the time of the last visitation by cholera in 1854. His only sister is married to W. B. Lambe, of Montreal, advocate. His brother, William J. Morris, has devoted himself exclusively to mercantile pursuits.
Shortt, Rev. William, B.D., Rector of St. Thomas Church, Walkerton, Ontario, was born in the city of Dublin, Ireland, in 1824. His father was Jonathan Shortt, attorney, and six-clerk, of No. 11 Blackhall street, Dublin, who married Anna Maria Antisell, daughter of Joseph Antisell, of Arbourhill, in the county of Tipperary, and both descended from a long line of highly respectable and respected ancestors. The subject of our sketch was educated in the city of Dublin, and in 1850 emigrated to the United States; was ordained deacon of the Protestant Episcopal Church by the Right Rev. Bishop Horatio Potter, of New York, in 1854, and priest in 1855; was for some time assistant to the rector of St. Thomas Church, N.Y., then assistant minister to St. George’s Church, Flushing, and first rector of Grace Church, Whitestone, L. I., until 1865, when, on account of ill-health, he was obliged to resign his charge. Finding the climate of Canada to agree with him, he was licensed by the Bishop of Ontario, to the mission of Amherst Island, and afterwards to Wolfe Island. In 1872 he was invited to take charge of Christ Church, St. Catharines. In 1875 he was appointed to the rectory of Walkerton, by the Bishop of Huron. Rev. Mr. Shortt’s parents were attached members of the Church of Ireland, and he has ever been loyal to her discipline and worship, has served her altars to the best of his ability, and hopes and expects to die in her communion. He took the purple degree in the order of Good Templars in 1875; and was chaplain of the Saugeen lodge, 197, A. F. and A. Masons. In 1857 he was married to Mary Amanda Haggerty, daughter of Bonnell Moody Haggerty and Martha Phillips, both of New Jersey, U. S. Mrs. Shortt’s grand-parents were loyal to the British government in the revolution, and were compelled to move to Nova Scotia, but returned to their native land when the act of amnesty was passed.
Langevin, Hon. Sir Hector Louis, K.C.M.G., Q.C., Ottawa, Minister of Public Works of the Dominion of Canada, M.P. for Three Rivers, Quebec province, was born in the city of Quebec, on the 25th August, 1828. He is descended from an illustrious line of ancestry, and has proved himself worthy of his descent. His father, the late Jean Langevin, acted as assistant civil secretary under the Earl of Gosford and Lord Sydenham, during the period those noblemen held the office of governor-general of Canada; and his uncle was the Right Rev. Jean Langevin, bishop of St. Germain de Rimouski. His mother, Sophia Scholastique La Force, was a daughter of Major La Force, who faithfully served his country during the war of 1812-14, and whose grandfather was acting commodore of the British fleet on Lake Ontario during the American revolutionary war. Sir Hector Louis Langevin, the subject of our sketch, received his education at the Quebec Seminary, and in 1846 left school to begin the study of law with the late Hon. A. N. Morin, at Montreal. He had an early taste for literature, and while pursuing his studies, wrote a great deal for the press. He became editor of theMélanges Religieuxin 1847, and subsequently editor of theJournal of Agriculture, both papers being published in Montreal. When Mr. Morin retired from practice, Mr. Langevin entered the office of the late Sir George Etienne Cartier. Thus began the connection between those two distinguished men which was destined to last so long, to be so close and so loyal, and of such importance to the French Canadians, as well as to the Dominion of Canada. He was called to the bar of Lower Canada in October, 1850. In 1856 Mr. Langevin was elected representative of Palace ward in the Quebec city council, subsequently became chairman of the water works committee, and during the absence of the mayor, Dr. Morrin in England, acted as chief magistrate of Quebec city. In 1857 he assumed the editorial management of theCourrier du Canada, published in Quebec. The same year he was chosen mayor of Quebec, and also representative for Dorchester county in the Legislative Assembly of Canada. On entering parliament he very naturally supported the administration, one of the leaders of which was the gentleman at whose hands he had received his political as well as his legal training. The Macdonald-Cartier ministry, however, held life by a very precarious tenure, and as the difficulties thickened about it, numbers yielded up their support, and it was forced to resign. Then George Brown was called to office, but had to relinquish it in three days. The old ministry was recalled to power, and a readjustment took place. On the 30th of March, 1864, Mr. Langevin became a Queen’s counsel, and on the same day entered the Taché-Macdonald administration as solicitor-general east. In 1866 he became postmaster-general, which office he retained till the consummation of confederation. In the confederation movement he took a prominent part. He was a delegate to Charlottetown, was a member of the Quebec conference, and went to England to aid the home office in perfecting the confederation scheme. During this entire movement, the tact, suavity and broad statesmanship which he has shown so prominently in later years came into light. Sir George E. Cartier was energetic, forceful, patriotic, but he had not thesavoir-faireof the Hon. Mr. Langevin, and he often exasperated where he should have conciliated. In the first Dominion administration Mr. Langevin was secretary of state for the Dominion, and the following year he was created a C.B., civil. In 1869 he assumed the portfolio of public works. In 1870 he was created a Knight Commander of the Roman order of Pope Gregory the Great. During Sir George Cartier’s absence in England, in 1873, Mr. Langevin acted as leader of the French Canadian Conservative party, and upon the death of his chief became the permanent leader. In 1873, on the downfall of Sir John A. Macdonald’s administration, he resigned office. At the general election of 1878, he was an unsuccessful candidate for Rimouski; but William McDougall, the member for Three Rivers, having made way for him, he was chosen for the vacated constituency by acclamation. In the new Conservative administration he became postmaster-general, which office he retained till 1879, when he became again minister of public works, and this office he still holds. Regarding his brilliant parts, and the service he has been to the Dominion and to the French Canadian people, the Queen conferred upon him the knighthood of the order of St. Michael and St. George. Sir Hector Langevin is an astute and wise statesman, and his whole aim is to create a feeling of brotherhood among his own people and their English-speaking compatriots, and to develop a feeling of loyalty throughout the country to the British empire. In politics he is a Liberal-Conservative, and in religion a Roman Catholic. In 1854 he was married to Justine, eldest daughter of the late Lieutenant-Colonel Charles H. Peter, J.P. Mrs. Langevin died on the 30th October, 1882.
Bridges, Henry Seabury, Fredericton, Professor of Classical Literature and History in the University of New Brunswick, was born November 23rd, 1850, at Sheffield, Sunbury county, N.B. His father was Henry Putnam Bridges, who died in December, 1881. His mother, Eliza Ann Burpee, is still living. Both parents have descended from the Puritan colony which came from Rowley, in Massachusetts, in 1763, and settled in Sheffield and Maugerville. Professor Bridges received his early education at the Grammar School, Sheffield, and matriculated at the University of New Brunswick, in September, 1866. He graduated in June, 1869, with honors in classics and French; also took the Alumni Society’s gold medal for the best Latin essay. He proceeded to the degree of M.A., in June, 1871; and since his graduation he has followed the teaching profession. He was appointed assistant master of the Sunbury Grammar School just after having left college, and remained in this position till July, 1872, when he received the appointment of second master of the Collegiate School, Fredericton, and then removed to his new sphere of duty. In June, 1874, he was appointed principal of the High School, and superintendent of the other schools of St. Stephen. In September, 1877, he left St. Stephen for Oxford, England, and then spent a year in the study of classical literature there. Returning to his mother country, he was appointed second master of the Grammar School in the city of St. John, in August, 1878, and principal in May, the following year. He received the appointment of professor of classics in the University of New Brunswick in June 1881; and that position he still holds. He has been president of the Alumni Society since June, 1885, and was one of its representatives on the senate of the university during the academic year, 1882-83. He married, October 7th, 1880, Alice Middlemore Foster, daughter of the late S. R. Foster, of St. John, New Brunswick. The fruit of this union has been two children,—a daughter, Edith Hazlewood, born August 31st, 1881, still living; and a son, Atlee Burpee, a child of great promise, born June 23rd, 1885, but who died of croup in November, 1887.
Starnes, Lieut.-Col. Hon. Henry, Montreal, was born at Kingston, Ontario, on the 13th October, 1816. He is the son of Benjamin Starnes and Elizabeth Melville, his wife. His grandfather, Nathan Starnes, was a United Empire loyalist who left the state of New York and settled in Canada at the close of the revolutionary war, the family being of Scotch descent. Mr. Starnes was educated at the Academy of Rev. Henry Esson, afterwards taking a course at Montreal College. After leaving college he entered the service of James Leslie, merchant, was admitted a partner in the business in 1849, and the firm of Leslie, Starnes & Co., wholesale merchants, continued until 1859 to do a very large and successful business. Mr. Starnes retired from mercantile life to assist in organizing the Montreal branch of the Ontario Bank, upon the organization of which he was appointed manager, and continued in charge for about ten years. He is now president of the Montreal branch of the well-known London and Liverpool and Globe Insurance Company. He has been and still continues to be identified with a great many local enterprises and interests. He was president of the Metropolitan Bank from its establishment until November, 1875; has been a director of Le Banque du Peuple; vice-president of the Montreal Board of Trade, the St. Jean Baptiste Society, and the Montreal Warehousing Company; a director of the Richelieu Steamboat Company, the Canada Engine and Machinery Company, and the International Transportation Company; and was at one time warden of Trinity house. In municipal matters Mr. Starnes has always taken a great interest, being a public spirited man, and taking much pride in the continued growth of the city which he had made his home. His fellow citizens were not unmindful of his efforts in their behalf, and he was elected mayor of Montreal in 1856-57, and again in 1866-67. In politics, Mr. Starnes is a Conservative, and sat for Chateauguay in the Canadian Assembly from the general election of 1857 until 1863, when he retired. He contested Montreal in 1857, but was defeated; declined a seat in the Quebec cabinet in 1867; was appointed to the Legislative Council in the same year, and appointed speaker of that body on the 8th March, 1878. He has for many years taken an active interest in militia matters, and at present holds the rank of lieutenant-colonel of the 1st Montreal Centre Reserve. In August, 1841, he was married to Eleanor Stuart, of Quebec, and has had issue seven children, of whom one has died, one daughter is a nun, and the other three daughters and two sons are all married.
Gravel, Rev. Joseph Alphonse, St. Hyacinthe, Quebec, was born the 2nd February, 1843, at St. Antoine de Richelieu, his father, Louis Gravel, being a highly respected farmer of that place, and his mother was Emilie Gladu. He received his early education at the St. Hyacinthe College, and entered the Seminary at Montreal for his theological studies December 8th, 1862. After a highly satisfactory completion of these, he was ordained the 26th August, 1866. Was vicar of Compton from August, 1866, to September, 1868, and rector of Compton for two years. He was director of the Classical and Commercial College at Sorel, from September, 1870, to July 1st, 1872, at which time he became assistant secretary to the bishop of St. Hyacinthe; January 17th, 1876, was made secretary to the bishop, procurator of the Episcopal body, and diocesan adviser; and was appointed vicar-general of the diocese in 1877. In April of the same year was made canon, and in 1888 was appointed prevost of the chapter-house,—administrator of the diocese on two occasions, in 1878 and in 1887. As will be seen by our enumeration of the many important offices of trust and responsibility, the subject of our sketch has been a worthy and deserving recipient of the confidence reposed in him. His principal mission has been to restore the revenues of the Episcopal corporation, in which laudable undertaking his indefatigable efforts and industry have been crowned with success. He has built the beautiful cathedral at St. Hyacinthe—a lasting monument of his energy and talents—and under his personal supervision it will shortly be decorated in a suitable manner, in keeping with, and worthy of, its artistic exterior.
Fraser, John A., Big Bras d’Or, Cape Breton, M.P.P. for Victoria county, is a native of Boularderie, C.B., where he was born 6th of November, 1840. He is the only surviving son of a Scotch pioneer clergyman, the late Rev. James Fraser, who emigrated to the island of Cape Breton from Ross-shire, Scotland, in 1835. He was employed as a missionary of the Church of Scotland, and like many another hard-working, self-denying pioneer minister, lived hard and travelled far, preaching the blessings of peace and contentment among a poor and scattered population. In many a fishing village of Cape Breton, and through many steep mountain paths in that inclement region, the name of Rev. James Fraser is held in reverence. The men who carried the gospel into the wilds of Cape Breton were possessed of more than ordinary courage. One of them, Rev. John Stewart, forty years pastor at Whycocomagh, a profound Gaelic poet and scholar, but lately passed away. The educational facilities of the island forty years ago being of the scantiest, John A. Fraser removed to Halifax, N.S., and received his scholastic training at the Free Church Academy in that city. Having completed his course he returned to his native county and went into business. He held the position of postmaster in Big Bras d’Or for eighteen years, and resigned it in obedience to the wishes of his numerous friends, in order to contest the constituency of Victoria at the general election of 1874, and was successful. He took his seat in the Legislative Assembly and earned a good reputation as a parliamentarian, being listened to with respect in the debates, and attending well to the work of committees. The great question agitating the public mind in Cape Breton for some years past has been the matter of railway construction. Cape Breton may be described a huge coal-bed, much of it worked, but by far the larger part being quite unexplored. Ocean steamers call at North Sydney and at the coal-shoot of Sydney proper, and carry away much coal for their own consumption. A large export of the black diamond is also carried on in coasters. Parts of the island are admirably adapted to agriculture, notably the shores of the Little Bras d’Or. A railway is wanted to weld together all parts of the island, and the great question is, what course shall it take? People living at Whycocomagh advocate a road travelling their section, whilst the central route from Port Mulgrave to Sydney, with a branch to Mabon and Port Hood, has many to support it. The population is rent by the favorers of either route. Last summer the Dominion government undertook the initial steps of the work, and every move since has been carefully criticized. Whichever route is finally adopted, the gain to the island will be great, and Cape Breton, which steadily increases her output of coal year by year, will gradually become a very opulent section of Canada. Its attractions in summer draw a great influx of visitors from the southward. Gold and marble have also been found there, whilst superior iron ore has been smelted. Mr. Fraser, having sat out his term of office did not offer again until the general election of 1886, when he was elected second on the list, there being six candidates. The vote stood: Dr. John L. Bethune, 777; John A. Fraser, 513; defeating M. A. McLeod, 459; John Morrison, 408; J. J. McCabe, 389; J. Munro, 468. Mr. Fraser also sat for four years in the municipal council of Victoria. He is a Liberal and takes a warm interest in all matters affecting the welfare of Cape Breton.
Chênevert, Cuthbert Alphonse, Barrister, Berthierville, Quebec province, was born in St. Cuthbert, Berthier county, P.Q., on 21st May, 1859. His parents were Theophile Chênevert and Mathilde Filteau. His father was for many years one of the largest merchants of the county of Berthier, and died in January, 1873. Young Chênevert studied at the College of L’Assomption and the College of Ste. Marie, at Montreal. On the 12th of January, 1880, he was admitted to the study of law, and followed the course of Laval University, at Montreal, attending at the same time the office of Longpré & David, advocates. He was called to the bar of Quebec on the 20th of January, 1883, and began to practise his profession at Berthierville, in partnership with the Hon. Honoré Mercier, prime minister of the province of Quebec, and C. Beausoleil, now member for Berthier, under the name and style of Mercier, Beausoleil & Chênevert. But he practises his profession alone at Berthierville, attending the circuits of Richelieu, Berthier, and Joliette. Mr. Chênevert is a Liberal in politics, and has been in several contests. He was a member and officer of the National Club at Montreal, and took an active part in its management. In 1881 he delivered a very interesting lecture before the members of this club, andLa Patrie, on the 13th March of that year, thus flatteringly alludes to it:—“At the last meeting of the National Club, which was numerously attended, one of the members, Mr. Cuthbert Chênevert, delivered a very instructive lecture, prepared at the request of the secretary, entitled ‘The History of the Press.’ The work is worthy of the title. It unites in the recital didactic language, strict history and pure literature. The invention of printing, the first attempts of Gutenberg, were related in a most interesting manner, and the encomiums passed on Canada were to the effect that our newspapers were the defenders of our liberties against oligarchy and bureaucracy. This magnificent lecture was marked with patriotic sentiments, expressed with great force. We congratulate Mr. Chênevert on his success. His example should encourage his friends, being one of the youngest members of the club. We hope this effort will not be his last.” Mr. Chênevert was married, on August 27, 1884, to Valerie Berthe Rocher, daughter of Clothilde Roy and Barthelemy Rocher, notary and registrar of the county of L’Assomption.
Robinson, D. A., M.D., Coaticook, Quebec, was born at West Charleston, Vermont, U.S.A., Feb. 29th, 1836. He was the eldest son of Dr. Elijah Robinson and Ann Eliza Smith, whose ancestry were of purely English origin and among the early settlers of the state of Connecticut. The great-grandfather on the father’s side was a colonel in the Revolutionary war of the American colonies against Great Britain, and the great-grandfather on the mother’s side, with several brothers, held positions of honor and trust in the Federal army. Dr. Robinson’s early education was confined mostly to the common schools. His classical course, preparatory to his entering upon the study of medicine, was through select schools and private teachers. His strictly medical course was commenced under the direction of his father, then a prominent and leading practitioner in the county in which he lived. His first course of medical lectures commenced at Dartmouth Medical College, Hanover, N.H., in the summer of 1858. He subsequently graduated among the first of his class at the Vermont University Medical College, Burlington, Vt., June, 1859, and commenced the practice of medicine at Milan, N.H., the following year. His successful career as a practitioner led to his appointment as surgeon in the United States army, and during the great American rebellion was with the Union army under Gen. Grant, and served with it till the surrender of the Confederate Gen. Lee and the close of the war. He recommenced civil practice at Island Pond, Vt., soon after his services ended as army surgeon in 1866, and conducted a successful practice in this town till the year 1874, when he moved to the prosperous and thriving town of Coaticook, P.Q. Two years subsequently he was made a member of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of the Province of Quebec, after having undergone a searching examination before the Provincial Medical Board in Montreal, by whom every applicant but himself was rejected, which reflected considerable honor on his ability and proficiency as a medical man. Aside from the position he now occupies in the medical profession of his adopted country, he is a member of the Vermont State Medical Society, and various other societies. Dr. Robinson is now in successful practice in Coaticook.
Foster, Hon. George Eulas, B.A., D.C.L., Ottawa, Minister of Marine and Fisheries of the Dominion of Canada, M.P. for King’s, New Brunswick, was born in Carleton county, N.B., on the 3rd September, 1847. His father, John Foster, was a descendant of a United Empire loyalist who settled in New Brunswick in 1783. His mother, Margaret Haney, was descended on her father’s side from German stock. George, the future statesman, received his primary education in the common and superior schools of his native county, and in September, 1865, entered the University of New Brunswick, at the head of the matriculating class, and was the winner in strong competition, of the King’s county scholarship in the same university. He also took, during his first year, the Douglas gold medal for an English essay, in a competition open to all the classes, and won the compound achromatic microscope, as a first prize, for natural science. His strong points at college were mathematics and classics, with a strong liking for English literature and history. He graduated B.A., in 1868; taught the Grammar School at Grand Falls, N.B.; became superior of the school at Fredericton Junction, and in the Baptist Seminary at Fredericton, one year at each. He became principal of the Ladies’ High School at Fredericton in 1870, and was appointed professor of classics and history in the University of New Brunswick, in 1871. He spent the years 1872 and 1873 at Edinburgh, Scotland, and Heidelberg, Germany, prosecuting his studies, and took at Edinburgh the medal, one first, and three other prizes. Returning to New Brunswick, he assumed the duties of his chair in the university at the end of 1873, and occupied the same until 1st January, 1879, when he resigned. Acadia College, N.S., conferred upon him the title of D.C.L., in 1885. He was examiner in Grammar and English at the Provincial Normal schools, Fredericton, from 1874 to 1879. Early in life—in the thirteenth year of his age—Mr. Foster identified himself with the order of the Sons of Temperance and later with the British Templars, the United Temperance Association, the Dominion Alliance, and the International Temperance Association. He filled the office of Grand Worthy Patriarch in the Grand Division of the Sons of Temperance of New Brunswick; Most Worthy Grand Templar of the British Templars of Canada; National Chief of the United Temperance Association, vice-president and president of the Executive of the Dominion Alliance of Canada, and president, for four years, of the International Temperance Association. During Professor Foster’s occupancy of the university chair, he frequently delivered lectures and addresses upon temperance topics, and upon his resignation, engaged in an extensive lecturing tour, delivering addresses on the total abstinence and prohibition questions in all the provinces of Canada, and most of the eastern and western states of the United States. He likewise edited several temperance papers. He has been identified for many years with the Young Men’s Christian Association of Fredericton, and was a member of the executive of the International Sabbath School Committee. After a lecturing tour of remarkable success, Professor Foster resolved to try what fortune had in store for him in the political sphere, though considering how wide and how brilliant his achievements had been, we may be sure he had no misgivings in taking the contemplated step. In looking about him for a constituency, naturally that one nearest his heart, the county wherein he first drew breath, suggested itself, and to King’s he went, though it was represented by that stalwart politician, Major James Domville. The friends of Mr. Domville considered the act of Professor Foster as one that could be properly described only by the phrase “cheeky,” but what they thought made no difference to the young candidate—he proceeded with his canvass, addressing the people everywhere upon the leading topics of the day. Against such eloquence as Professor Foster brought into the field, Major Domville was powerless. But apart from his ability as a debater, the people of King’s had put the highest estimate upon the integrity and character of the young candidate, and they accordingly elected him in June, 1882, to represent them in the House of Commons at Ottawa. His election was voided; but he was again elected in November of the same year, and still continues to represent King’s county at Ottawa. On December 10th, 1885, he was sworn in a member of the Privy Council, and invested with the portfolio of marine and fisheries. Professor Foster has travelled in all the provinces of Canada, and through the greater portion of the United States, and has also visited England, Scotland, France, Germany and Switzerland. In religion he belongs to the Free Baptist denomination, and for many years has been, and is still, a prominent member of its conference. He was president of the Union Baptist Educational Society in 1884-5. The Hon. George Eulas Foster is a Liberal-Conservative in politics, and a full believer in the future greatness of Canada. He favors a civil service system which shall, so far as consistent with the peculiar circumstances of our country, conform to the system in operation in Great Britain, a moderate protective tariff, such as shall maintain our markets for our own manufactures, and at the same time not conduce to the formation of monopolies, a wise, tried economy in the administration of the finances of the country, and an enlightened, progressive and comprehensive policy. He is one of the foremost speakers in the country, if force and clearness of statement, fluency, and adherence to logic can entitle him to that place. He is a man of great energy, and of boundless nervous force. A literary grace pervades his style, but his speeches are never florid, or beyond the bounds of good taste in this respect. There is a singular earnestness in his manner, and nearly every speech that he delivers resolves itself into a series of propositions, one consequent upon the other. As we have said, he is a speaker of much force, and sometimes his eloquence rises to the height of passion.